More than £100,000 of Welsh Government funds has been earmarked for projects to clean up and green up communities

Clean up projects across South Wales have been awarded £800,000 to tidy up the region.

Community groups will receive a significant part of the Welsh Government funding for initiatives from clearing rubbish to removing dog waste, painting murals to planting vegetables.

There is also £35,000 for each local authority on top of £400,000 of individual grants for projects organised by each council.

Of the £118,305.68 for community groups, People Around Here in Cardiff have received £5,000 to transform a wall covered in graffiti into a piece of art. The community art initiative will be working to cover the 100 metre wall in Cathays with a mural telling the history of the area.

While the Cornelly and District Development Trust have been given £30,000 to turn an overgrown area of land in Bridgend affected by litter and fly-tipping into community gardens.

Anthony Slaughter, chair of Penarth Greening, who have been awarded £11,610 said they would be using the money to help create community garden on a patch of land owned by the neighbouring nursery school, Bute Cottage Nursery in Penarth.

The group started looking at this patch of land around two years ago but the project stalled as it became difficult to fund it.

He said: “We have been looking at various options for community gardens for quite a long time.”

“The aim is to transform an unused piece of derelict wasteland into a Community Garden that will be used and enjoyed by all members of the community.” Once the nursery, which owns the land, had got permission for a garden, they had to comply with rules that cover all the open spaces in the area, namely, making sure it is securely locked at night.

That meant the project would need funding in order to build a secure fence and gate and so it was put on hold while they applied for various grants. But with the recent injection of cash it’s full steam ahead and Anthony and the group plan to hold meetings at the end of the summer to tell the local community about their plans.

Anthony said: “Hopefully more and more people will get involved and it will have it’s own group, that’s the only way these things succeed. There was a lot of support initially when it was first suggested.”

Penarth Greening planted a small orchard on the land earlier this year to give people an idea of the area’s potential.

Anthony said: “Plans for the garden include a small orchard area with wildflower meadow planting, a log circle ‘open classroom’ space which will be available to all local schools and community groups, a community growing area with raised beds for fruit and vegetable growing and a range of variously planted areas with seating and space for relaxation and socialising.

“What’s happened in other community gardens is people think it’s an allotment and that a group of very keen people are going to take it over, the actual growing section is going to be a very small part of it, it’s just about creating a community space.”

Housing group Melin Homes has been given £30,000 which it is using to bring residents and non-residents together for their Brighter Cleaner Communities Project in Torfaen and elswhere.

They are looking for ideas from the public but will build on previous clean ups which have involved clean ups with skips, litter picking, sprucing up gardens and planting flowers, developing allotment areas, refurbishing benches and paths and bringing disused land back into use.

The Welsh Government is also providing £35,000 to each local authority on top of £400,000 of individual grants for projects organised by each council.

The council-run projects include £52,000 for a Caerphilly council project to improve the entrance to the Lansbury Park shopping centre by removing planters, clearing rubble, laying paving, planting trees, shrubs and flowers and installing street furniture.

While Torfaen have been given £52,651 to regenerate the Cwmynyscoy area by working with local residents and the gypsy traveller community to restore the potholed surface of the lanes, clear vegetation, litter and fly-tipping and planting trees and flowers

Frank Ady Head of Marketing and Enterprise for Keep Wales Tidy, a charity which works with community groups and local authorities for a cleaner Wales, said the funding would have a “massive impact”.

He said: “This amount of money can achieve so much especially when your labour costs are so little.

“What we do is inspire community groups to clean up and green up. That’s everything from litter clearance right through to the regeneration of areas which have become blighted and become dangerous.

“It changes not just the look of an area and ambience but it’s everything right through to social and economic impact.

“Groups of individuals who might be out of work, and have got time to volunteer the experience might actually help them to get work.

“It means a lot to these communities.”

By funding grassroots groups Mr Ady said that these improvements were more likely to be sustainable. He said: “If people are putting the effort in and working to volunteer and working to transform these areas they’re going to be inspired to keep it looking good. It’s totally sustainable.

The charity has seen many examples of groups which have been set up for a particular project becoming established and finding their own sources of funding over time.

Mr Ady said: “It’s a lovely Welsh trait that people love where they live. We’re like a little catalyst that gets that support going and it’s getting more and more trendy with green activities. “It’s nice to go to the beach or the park but actually look outside the back gate or the front door and there’s lots that can be done. It’s really inspiring for us to see all these groups.”

Projects which have been given funds

Community projects:

- £30,000 for the Cornelly & District Development Trust to turn an overgrown area of land in Bridgend affected by litter and fly-tipping into community gardens.

- £11,981.70 for Badgers Brook Allotments Association to transform a disused area of land in Bridgend into a community growing area. The project will tackle litter, fly-tipping and dog fouling with the aim of turning the site into allotment plots for the community.

- £4,260 for Friends of Maesteg Welfare Park to build paths through the park that will provide greater community access from the town to the neighbourhoods surrounding the park in Nantyfyllon and Maesteg.

- £5,000 for People Around Here (PAH) to tackle graffiti on a 100 meter wall in Cathays, Cardiff by creating a mural that showcases the history and heritage of the area.

- £3,540 for Tongwynlais Community Council to work with local residents to remove fly-tipping from a path in Cardiff and plant shrubs and trees

- £11,610 for Gwyrddio Penarth Greening to work with the local school and community to clear an area of land in Cardiff that is subject to fly-tipping, littering, dog fouling and graffiti to create a community garden

- £27,720 for Green Valley Centre in Rhonda Cynon Taf to create an Eco-garden working in partnership with schools, the local community and residents groups.

- £24,193.98 for Melin Homes to tackle littering and dog fouling in Torfaen, Newport, Monmouthshire, Powys and Blaenau Gwent. Local residents and school children will take part in clean up days and anti-dog fouling campaigns will be held to encourage dog owners to behave more responsibly.

Local authority-led projects:

Bridgend:

- £2,950 for ten events in schools to raise awareness of local environmental issues, encourage the proper disposal of rubbish and maximise recycling.=

- £60,000 for an innovative project that will establish a team of financial investigators who will use the Proceeds of Crime Act to target fly-tippers and waste criminals and remove assets and funds found to be the proceeds of crime. Where the profits of criminal activities outweigh the fines imposed for those crimes, seizing those profits can be a more effective deterrent than prosecution and fines.

- £12,576 for a street art project involving local young people to add character to the local area and deter graffiti from reoccurring

- £52,651 regenerate the Cwmynyscoy area by working with local residents and the gypsy traveller community to restore the potholed surface of the lanes, clearing vegetation, litter and fly-tipping and planting trees and flowers

- £56,655 for a programme of activities to clean up open spaces, carry out planting to restore natural habitats, erect fencing, upgrade and build new paths, and encourage wildflower establishment.

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